Don't Just Do Something, Stand There!

Here's another reason why the entire stimulus bill should be taken out behind the barn and killed with an ax.

CBO (Congressional Budget Office), the official scorekeepers for legislation, said the House and Senate bills will help in the short term but result in so much government debt that within a few years they would crowd out private investment, actually leading to a lower Gross Domestic Product over the next 10 years than if the government had done nothing.

CBO estimates that by 2019 the Senate legislation would reduce GDP by 0.1 percent to 0.3 percent on net. [The House bill] would have similar long-run effects, CBO said in a letter to Sen. Judd Gregg, New Hampshire Republican, who was tapped by Mr. Obama on Tuesday to be Commerce Secretary.

But we need it now, do you hear me? NOW! Err, at least that's what The One is telling us.